A leaked phone call has surfaced, revealing President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, advising a senior Kremlin official on how Russian President Vladimir Putin should engage with Trump to gain favor before discussing a peace plan for Ukraine. The five-minute conversation, which took place on October 14, 2025, was reported by Bloomberg on November 25, 2025.
During the conversation with Yuri Ushakov, Putin’s top foreign policy aide, Witkoff provided detailed guidance on how the Russian leader should reach out to Trump. The envoy suggested that Putin personally call Trump before a planned White House meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to congratulate him on the Gaza ceasefire, which Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, had helped negotiate.
Ushakov responded positively to Witkoff’s advice, agreeing that Putin would commend Trump as a “real peace man” during their conversation. Witkoff elaborated on how the discussion should proceed, recommending that Putin introduce a peace plan favorably.
Witkoff also acknowledged the likelihood that Ukraine would need to make considerable concessions to Russia in any agreement. He mentioned Donetsk and suggested that a land swap might be necessary to reach a resolution. Throughout the call, Witkoff expressed his regard for Putin, telling Ushakov, “the deepest respect for President Putin.”
While discussing Zelenskyy’s upcoming visit to the White House, Witkoff minimized his own involvement, stating he would be meeting the Ukrainian president only “because they want me there.” The envoy emphasized his belief that Trump would provide him with significant freedom in negotiations, saying the president would grant him “a lot of space and discretion to get to the deal.”
After the call with Witkoff, a second leaked conversation emerged, revealing Ushakov speaking with Kirill Dmitriev, an economic adviser to Putin and head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund. The two Russian officials discussed creating their own version of a peace plan to present to Witkoff, confident he would ensure it closely aligned with Russia’s interests. Dmitriev suggested conveying the document informally, acknowledging the Americans might not adopt Russia’s version exactly but believing it would remain similar.
Witkoff also met with Dmitriev in Miami, Florida, alongside Kushner after the October call. This meeting raised questions about coordination between Trump’s team and Russian officials on the peace plan that would eventually be proposed.
The initial 28-point peace plan resulting from these discussions faced intense criticism from lawmakers across party lines. Critics described it as a Russian wishlist that would require Ukraine to cede occupied territories, abandon aspirations for NATO membership, and allow Russia to rejoin the G8. Secretary of State Marco Rubio subsequently revised the proposal to 19 points, which Ukraine has tentatively agreed to consider.
Trump defended Witkoff while speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on November 25, 2025. “That’s a standard thing,” Trump said, adding he had not heard the audio himself. “He’s gotta sell this to Ukraine, he’s gonna sell Ukraine to Russia. That’s what a dealmaker does. I haven’t heard it, but I heard it was standard negotiation.”
White House Director of Communications Steven Cheung told NewsNation the leak demonstrated that Witkoff communicates with officials in both Russia and Ukraine nearly every day to achieve peace, which is precisely what Trump appointed him to do.
However, Representative Gregory Meeks, a ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, expressed concern about the relationship between Trump’s team and Moscow. Meeks said Trump and Witkoff are “in bed with the Russians,” calling the situation troubling and urging Americans to believe what they’re seeing about the administration’s dealings with the Kremlin.
The Kremlin responded to the leak by expressing its own concerns. Ushakov claimed parts of the transcript were fake, while Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the disclosure was intended to undermine peace efforts. Peskov suggested many people in various countries, including the United States, want to halt the trend toward peace.
The controversy arose as Trump’s planned meeting with Zelenskyy ended in a heated exchange, according to reports. The Ukrainian president had hoped to secure long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles during the White House visit, but ultimately did not obtain them.
Witkoff and Trump have been friends for over 40 years, and the president appointed the real estate developer as his special envoy to help resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, a Yale Law School associate of Vice President JD Vance, has since taken a more prominent role in delivering the latest peace proposals to Russian officials.
The leaked conversations have intensified scrutiny of the Trump administration’s approach to negotiating an end to the war in Ukraine, raising questions about whether American officials are adequately representing Ukrainian interests in the peace process.
